Chopski

iTrader: (1)

My 89' came with the bose system. I have a complete bose system now that I found a bose head unit out of a Corvette. When the last time a head unit was hooked to the factory system is unknown. I recently hooked the HU up and all of my amps appeared to be dead (very little sound output in two and nothing in the other two) and at least one dead speaker doing the battery test. John in RI said in another thread the right side can be an issue on many GM head units. So I will switch the wires around to flip the channels and see if indeed it is dead on right side.

Question: Since I know the bose amps have bad capacitor issues, has anyone here ever rebuilt them? The cost to repair myself is very minimal as the parts are cheap. I know you can get them rebuilt for about 80 bucks each but x 4 and it gets up there. I want to keep it original but swapping in a UX1 and gutting the bose enclosures may be the better choice.

Thoughts good or bad? Ditch it or rebuild?

The option to use the current bose enclosures with amps pulled and aftermarket speakers can get me through until I fix the amps. I just don't want this to become an electrical nightmare and it would keep the original look.

Last question is will an aftermarket speaker work with the bose amps after I get them working? I have read they are different ohm speakers (bose) but have not confirmed it.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

The right channel out problem is a real common problem with the early-mid eighties Delcos because the capacitors located under the heat sink tend to fail. Because the BOSe head units don't have a heat-sink,..... I doubt the right channel problem is a common problem with BOSE.

BOSE Amp rebuild,.... $45
http://bosecentral.com/

I had a problem with 2 rebuit amps but those 2 amps ( out of a almost a dozen ) were returned, re-serviced and shipped back to me in working order. All the AMPs I've had them service are all still working. IIRC they have a 1 year policy on repaired Amps. ( ATTN: John or Kurt Tell them you found them thru TGO ! )

EVERY used Camaro amp I've obtained over the last 15 years or so was dead. But; I've had good luck with used Caddy Amps...... about 1/2 of the ones I find in the bone yards work OK. Pretty sure that all the 90's Caddy BOSE stuff is "GOLD", but early nineties units are 50 watts each & late nineties units are 100. ( not sure if the 100 watt Amps will fit in Thirdgen enclosures,... I've only used them for 6x9 sail panel speakers so far. )

I only use BOSE speakers with a BOSE system, so no advise to offer when it comes to aftermarket speakers !

When you've got an Amp problem the BOSS system can be a PITA. My set-up uses 8 Amps,... so it seems like I'm digging one out for replacement every spring ! But when the Amps are good,... the BOSE system is a pretty good sounding stock set-up ( IMO ! ) It's a pretty 'uncommon' option and that alone is reason enough for some guys to keep it.

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

Hey John have you used line reducers in any of your systems? If I go with the UX1 head unit I will need a line reducer to the amps. I do have a Bose HU but prefer the UX1. I assume most of the quality of sound is through the amps and not the head unit. Any suggestions on the line reducer?

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Ya'...... I too prefer the EQ head units so I've got to use a line converter for my rides. I've used 3 different ones over the years ( but the one that's made for the pre-89, 3-plug decks is no longer available anywhere.) This is some info I had posted in another thread that might help,.......



The Peripheral GMAH21 is the converter I prefer. It's a bit simpler than the other one shown and the adjustment dials seem to have a better range of output adjustments. Sadly; the only way to get one is to get lucky and find an old NOS part somewhere.

The PAC OEM1 seems to be the only aftermarket converter still being produced for our cars. This one is "weird" in that it provides 3 output wires for each channel. The factory negative speaker wires get connected to the PAC negative out speaker wire ( with black stripe on the wire ) and I used the wire with the red stripe for the positive circuit. ( rather than the solid color wires )

Cost is about $35 for either of these signal Converters.

* before final splicing I checked the sound from 1 speaker using the sold colored wire as positive and then used the red stripped wire as positive and the sound seemed to be exactly the same to me. The red striped wire is called the "HIGH" and the solid wires are called 'LOW'. Didn't seem to make a difference during my quick check,.... so I used the red striped wires as the positive leads for each channel.

NOTE: For some reason both companies felt the need to omit 1 of the factory wires from their "plug & play" harness. The missing wire is the GREY DIM circuit wire. This must be added to the harness for the DIM feature to work when the headlights are turned on.


Hope that helps !

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Good thing I found this thread. I'm going to check all the amps on my Bose system. Although, I did order two 4" Alpine speakers to try and replace the rear deck Bose stock factory units which have seen better days in their 30+ years.

So is there a capacitor list on their specific type numbers so that I can just order them off the bat?

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Not sure what that means ?? You just send them your original AMPs and they restore them........


You know,... you can find those 87 Thirdgen style rear hatch BOSE speakers from an early-mid nineties Caddy; They used the exact same BOSE speakers in the front doors that the 87-89 Camaro used in the hatch. Those speakers were also used in Vettes and a few other cars too I think.

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

I've been soldering since I was a kid. So I plan on replacing the capacitors myself. Just wanted to know if there is a list of the type of capacitors that need to be replaced.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

OK - now I Get it !

I doubt they have any of that info available for release,.... I'm guessing the best bet / simplest option is to simply open up your AMPS to see what capacitors are inside.

I don't remember what those capacitors were - but you can see most of the Amp internals in this thread: ( The Green ones are the ones that most often fail. )

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/hist...-amp-info.html

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

I found a Corvette site that lists them but I agree with you and better just to check them from my own amps.

Btw, I installed the new rear speakers with Alpine 4" units. They needed some trimming on their plastic mounts and the Bose hold down round screen thing, was a bit tight but not bad.

The rear amps were fine as the speakers work fantastic for being almost plug and play.

The front kick panel speakers are next and those I suspect those have the bad amps as they sound like garbage.

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

Hey John my car is an '89 which has the small pins for connectors. What converter would work best for that? The ones above were for '88 and older aren’t they? I sent all my amps to Bose central. Should be back this week. I also needed two speakers. One front and one rear. Luckily I live 20 minutes from M&R electronics and they have stock Bose speakers. Thanks!

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

The line converters pictured are actually intended for the 89-90 + small style plugs...... I soldered the earlier plugs on them cause' that's what I needed for my 84. IIRC these things didn't even have the GM connectors included with them when new.

You know; I'm not sure that the front kick panel speakers (use in 87-89 on both sides & 90-92 on the drivers side only ) were ever used in any other car. It's a very low profile speaker and I've never seen it used in any other make/model.

I've dealt with John and Kurt @ BOSE Central and they have both been very helpful in the past. Great customer service and you just can't beat the price for rebuilt Amps !!

Chopski ----> Send me a PM if your interested in a BOSE CD Player. Was planning on putting it in the classifieds soon but figured I'd mention it since your actively messing with your system.

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

I got lucky. The all the amps have no leakage whatsoever. In fact, they look brand new. Although, I did find out why the front left kick panel speaker was going in and out. The positive wire from the amp to the speaker was a bit loose. I re-soldered it and perfect.

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

Well I got my rebuilt amps in place and everything works fine. It isn't a modern 8 speaker system like my daily driver but it is a decent sounding system for the era. I will probably add some speakers to the sail panels and use the already in place speakers from the previous owner in the dash.

John can I uses the front channel and rear channels for the dash and sail panels by piggyback off the outputs before it gets to the pac line converter? I am using a ux1 head unit in the future. Currently have an original Bose head unit from a 88 corvette but will go to the ux1 head unit because it has the auxiliary port added to it. Since the ux1 has a amp built into it i would think it would power the other non-bose speakers ok. I could be totally wrong though too.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Your current set-up ( 88 BOSE head unit & speakers ) has speakers in the kicks and in the rear hatch panel,... right ??

If you decide to use the factory UX1 head unit and want to KEEP using the stock BOSE speakers you will have to run the radio - to the PAC - to the BOSE AMPs / speakers.

It sounds as if you intend to add 4 "regular" speakers for use with the UX1, but I'm not sure if you are going to try and use the BOSE speakers with them or not ?? If you envision running 'regular" speakers in the dash and sail panels, then just run some new wire and add the 4 new regular speakers without connecting the BOSE speakers or the AMPs. ( no need for a PAC converter,..... just a normal 4 speaker set-up. )

In my case, I had a factory EQ radio and wanted to use the BOSE Speakers / AMP boxes. I ran the 4 outputs from the factory deck to the PAC,... then split each channel after the PAC to make outputs for 8 speakers. That's 4 normally mounted BOSE Thirdgen speakers as well as 2 BOSE 6x9's ( from A Caddy ) and 2 BOSE speakers in the dash ( Thirdgen Kick panel speakers ). I had considered running the factory output and splitting the channels after the radio from 4-to-8 and using 2 PAC converters,..... but I never had a problem splitting the 4 channels to 8 after the PAC, so I never tried the 2 PAC converter method.

I'm GUESSING that you could use 4 "regular" speakers and 4 BOSE speakers at the same time by split the 4 channel output AFTER the radio and run 4 normal speakers directly from the UX1 and then 4 channels to the PAC for the 4 BOSE speakers. I have never tried this and do not know what the results would be. ( I'm guessing that it would work, but how well and for how long - I've got no clue ??!?!?)


Not sure that helps - but i hope so !

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

Actually the last paragraph sums up exactly what I want to do. I would tap into my wires before the PAC converter and run the sail and dash speakers (front for dash and rear for sail speakers) then run the Bose speakers after the PAC converter. Because the ux1 has a built in amp it could supply enough power to the pre-Pac speakers and then get reduced down by the converter for the Bose speakers.

Not sure if this would be hard on the head unit or actually better for the head unit as it takes stress off the built in amp. My gut feeling is a loaded amp (turning up the volume) would create more heat because it isn't flowing the power as it normally would with the PAC line reducer. The line reducer is absorbing the power so maybe only the converter is warming up and not the UX1 amp.

I guess all I can do is try it. My only concern in my UX1 head unit as it is super mint. It is amazing how nice it is.

Anyways thanks John. I appreciate your response. I may just go your route and find 4 more Bose amps and speakers if I don't like how it sounds.

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Years ago, I tapped into each existing Bose speaker when I added the sail panel speakers and front upper speakers with no ill effects whatsoever. And from the look of the Bose amps that that original to my car, nothing wrong after looking at them.

The only thing that was a pain, was that since my car came with the Bose option, the rear sail panels did not have the cut out and no factory fiberglass enclosure with the mounting bracket. I got those from Ebay.

So basically, right sail panel 6x9 connected to right rear Bose and so on.

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

The dilemma continues. So I hooked up the Pac converter to my ux1 head unit and it sounds like crap. I adjusted the pots to low and high and it didn’t make it any better. So i bypassed the Pac converter and it sounded about the same. I couldn't turn the volume up very high obviously but it sounded real muddy with or without the converter. When I hook up the Bose radio it sounds really nice other than slight background hiss but sound quality in the cabin was very nice. So either the Pac converter is junk or there is something wrong with the UX1. I find it weird that I can hook up the UX1 to the Bose system and it sounds close to the same with or without the converter. I wonder if there is something wrong with the UX1? Sad part is the UX1 is absolutely mint. The person I bought it from said it had to been pulled out when it was new which is either the unit had a problem from the factory or the original owner just wanted after market radio (CD player was ultra tech at the time) from the get go. I can see someone pulling it out and put a CD player in back in '89.

So my biggest issue with the Bose radio is the colour of the display (yellow and should be blue for Camaro) and lack of auxiliary jack that was installed in the UX1. So for now I will have to use FM (BAH!) and the crappy cassette adaptor to listen to music as an auxiliary connection. My brother can put an aux connection in no problem but I will wait until winter. I just really wanted the UX1 to work so bad. I'm bummed about the UX1 but happy that the Bose system does work like it should.

I'm not done with the UX1. I'll see if there is something wrong with it and hopefully fix it. This should work which is why I wonder what is going on here.

Chopski

iTrader: (1)

So John i read your post about the high low outputs on the Pac. I'm going to see if that makes a difference.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Ya', I'd question the functionality of the UX1 deck too under that circumstance. Is there any way that you can bench test the EQ/Cassette using "regular" speakers ??

I'm assuming that at this point you are still only running the 4 BOSE speakers/AMPs ?? If you've got the speakers mixxed already it might be a good idea to wire the PAC in 'clean' first,... then try adding additional speakers once the converter is set-up and working properly.

I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this,..... but are ALL the radio wires hooked thru the PAC ? ( full Power, switched power, ground, as well as speaker ?? )

is the "Radio" fuse still OK ??

I've had several Peripheral converters fail on me over the years. The PAC I'm using now is the first one I ever tried and it's still good after a few years of service.


** Don't forget the DIM circuit wire that's not on the PAC harness !